Yes, it makes your toes tap. Yes, it has some great guitar licks. What it's really lacking is a blues sensibility at the singing end - those polished harmonies leave me feeling like the whole thing just runs together and after about the fourth song, I'm looking to change the channel. Blues is supposed to crunchy, gravelly, dirty-sounding - not polished. At least it's better than Menudo!

I'll start off first by saying that I have all the Cure albums, and have been a fan for a long time. I have enjoyed the many phases of the Cure, in fact I have celebrated them all. With that said, I firmly believe that Disintegration represents the pinnacle of Robert's artistic vision. The wistful, blissful atmosphere of that release continues to haunt to this day, the layers of sound making for deep listening and reflection. So, if Disintegration is the murky swamp, their latest release is merely a mud puddle. The music isn't particularly inspiring, and Robert is in one of his "F--- you all" moods, which you'd think he would have grown up and out of by now. Robert has always had a subtle sense of melody, but I find that it's disturbingly lacking here. And for the most part he's just yelling out loud and not singing so much, which grates on my ears after a while. I don't really see much new ground being broken, which would be the perfect answer to all the copycat groups which have sprung up. Instead, it's mostly turning over the same ground that he first dug up two decades ago. Save your money.

I don't understand what the griping is about. These days I would be happy to come across a quintet with one-fifth the firepower of these guys. To listen to them just play live in the studio and knock the tunes out is simply mind-blowing. It's a clear case of talent over technology. Modern musicians have so many tools to clean up and edit after the fact - they can even make recordings without ever meeting - just slap the tracks together. But it seems a vital energy and sense of the moment is lost in this manner, which really is a shame. Stan Getz is the big surprise here. After listening to all that bossa nova stuff - Who knew? Even if you have only a passing interest in jazz - this is a great disc to own. It really is the pulse of what was happening at that moment in time, and not just For Musicians Only.

Strange how a musician can decide "hey that's a great sound, I'll copy it and make a mint". Someone compared Paul Brown to Norman Brown - there's no comparison there, Norman is a much better musician and sings in key too. The songwriting is nothing to write home about and that electronic voice effect on Don't Let Me Be Lonely Tonight should feel like pins and needles to James Taylor, who crooned it so softly. Save that stuff for Cher, ok? There's no real swing or groove here, that would require a real drummer (heaven forbid!) I'd rather the guy play solo than use cheap backup like that. Go get some Wes Montgomery, George Benson, Ronny Jordan, or especially Zachary Breaux instead.

Ok, my eyes bulged out with anticipation when I saw that these three pinnacle musicians were doing a project together. Unfortunately - it's not three, it's four - who hired the keyboardist, guys? If ever there was a fifth wheel, this is the spot. He adds absolutely nothing to the mix, and in fact detracts from the other three, taking up some of their valuable real estate in the mix.

Greg is Greg, he's blistering at times, funky at times. I have all his stuff, and I had hoped that being in the same room with the planetwide best rhythm section would really get him to push into new territory, but that doesn't seem to the case, because, as another reviewer pointed out - they never were in the same room! How unfortunate that these guys can't use some of their wads of cash to charter a plane and meet up for a month and see what comes out of the session rather than just exchanging mix-downs.

Dennis is great, but I think he has more fun with Niacin than here for whatever reason. He never really stretches out.

Victor has a few moments in the spotlight, but sometimes he's lost in the shuffle, which is unfortunate.

They don't really stretch out until Contigo, which rambles along nicely until about halfway through, when it melts down temporarily before coming back to its mellow groove.

Overall, it's solid, hence the four stars, but I didn't really get blown away like I expected to.

Usually my attempts to widen my musical horizons meet up with something that's less than desirable. But occasionally something really unique and exciting pops up that makes me reassess the state of music as a whole. Discovering Brian Eno was one of those watershed moments, and GYBE is becoming another one. It's such a refreshing change from all of the copycat stuff that gets put out. Much of the music I really enjoy has a great wide expansive feel to it, and this is no exception. It's breadth and depth are staggering. ...

I've also been listening to Labradford (which I think is better) and Do Make Say Think (which is neither better nor worse, just a slightly different take on the same path) If you like GYBE, try those too.

It's profound in its sublime simplicity. Like floating in a sonic bath until you get just the right temperature and weightless feeling, your mind starts to drift into that land between waking and sleeping, lids half-shut. You're officially ready to have an AHA moment! (no, not the group, the realization...) It reminds one of Brian Eno circa 1978, only focused more on real instruments. The soundstage could be these three musicians standing about 100 yards apart from each other on a plain in Nebraska, and your mind will feel more open than that after the first 5 minutes of this disc. If you're the type who can sit still for more than that first five minutes and reflect, you're a lock to buy this. Try it, you'll like it!

It's a shame that Sting has decided to stop pushing the musical envelope as he did from his nascent days with the Police into his solo career, perhaps ending with Mercury Falling. Now he's rich and comfortable, content to rest on his laurels and churn out (ugh) pop music, rehashing his old lyrics in new songs and hiring background musicians instead of true sidemen who will challenge him and help him venture closer to the ragged edge rather than the center of the pillow. Whoever told him he could be successful as a spoken-word artist instead of a singer should be slapped. Add to this is questionable views on world politics, and it's high time to stop spending money on his releases.

Well, the sparse arrangements and great wordplay continue from the last release, even better in some spots. Without an obvious radio-friendly release, it seems freer and yet still more introspective. It's reminiscent of Norah Jones in a way, without sounding as lounge-y.

Yes, it makes your toe tap. Yes, it's like a cross between AC/DC and the Ramones. Yes, that stuff was much better in it's original form. Delete, move on.